Before the pandemic hit, the nation’s manufacturing sector — including the refining and petrochemical industries — was wrestling with how to find and train enough young people to replace the wave of Baby Boomers retiring from the workforce at a rate of nearly 6,000 per day.
AFPM members know that petrochemicals are invaluable to the production of countless consumer products. But many Americans may not realize how much they rely on xylene, benzene, butadiene, toluene, ethylene and propylene when they opt to spend time outside.
It was 2010 and Jerry Wascom, ExxonMobil’s Americas refining director, was worried. Despite fuel and petrochemical manufacturers making significant improvements in the safety of their individual operations, across the industries there was an uptick in serious incidents. Workers were getting injured, surrounding communities were losing confidence, the reputation of the industries was being tarnished and regulators were becoming increasingly engaged. Wascom turned to his counterparts within the American Fuel and Petrochemical Manufacturers Association (AFPM), the industry trade group, and asked, “Are we doing enough to protect people?”
U.S. petrochemical manufacturers are at the forefront of research and development into cutting-edge solutions to give new life to used plastic products. Leveraging their in-depth understanding of plastics’ molecular composition and the manufacturing process itself, AFPM members are investing in recycling technology, infrastructure and partnerships that will reduce mismanaged plastic waste by applying unlocking its value as a feedstock.
AFPM Senior Petrochemical Advisor Jim Cooper answered a few questions to help illuminate some of the ways that petrochemicals—and the industries that produce them—are working to protect people from the coronavirus.
The temporary enforcement policy announced by the Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) triggered criticism about some in the oil and gas industry getting a “license to pollute” during a public health emergency.